Video Report

Michelle Obama Speaks at Howard University

First lady Michelle Obama visited Howard University in Washington, D.C. Wednesday as part of a panel discussion on women balancing work and personal life. (DeNeen Brown / The Washington Post )

Updated 4:00 p.m.By DeNeen L. Brown and Hamil R. Harris
First Lady Michelle Obama told a gathering at Howard University's School of Business today that working mothers must choose their own paths, balancing work with family.

"The one thing -- the one message that I have is -- for all of you struggling with this issue -- is just remember there is no right answer. It took me a long time to figure that out. There is no one right way to do any of this. And the choices and the decisions will change, given your circumstances," she told an audience at a panel discussion at the school.

The event was billed as "Home, Work, Community: The Role of the African American Women As Change Agents."

Mrs. Obama, who wore a red dress with a single strand or pearls, spoke briefly at the start of of the panel discussion, which included four businesswomen and a student leader. Howard officials said Obama's staff had called the university and asked whether the first lady could visit as part of her listening tour in her new community of Washington.

She has visited federal agencies, a D.C. school and, on Tuesday, a multicultural center, where she read to toddlers and spoke to teenagers about life's challenges.

"It was her saying she wanted to come to the university," said Alvin Thornton, interim provost and chief academic officer. "We wrapped the panel around her visit."